3/25 Vic sewer, drone harassment, Sydney ferry, Malheur repair

2016 Poster by Sandy Haight

Columbia Bank (Tulip Festival) Photo Contest is Underway!
Photos must have been taken no earlier than March 21, 2016 or later than April 30, 2016 and be submitted under one of the following categories, each related to the Festival:
a.) Beauty of the flowers close-up
b.) Beauty of the flowers in the fields
c.) Families (photos of multiple generations encouraged)
d.) Children
For more information, click here.

SEWAGE IN THE CRD: Park would top underground plant at Clover Point                                
Clover Point wasn’t on the public’s radar during the most recent consultation process on sewage treatment options. And if everything goes according to plan for the Capital Regional District, a Clover Point facility will remain out of public view once completed. The CRD is moving ahead with a proposal for a two-plant option to meet the region’s wastewater treatment needs – with plants constructed at Clover and either McLoughlin or Macaulay points, near the location of current sewage outfalls. The Clover Point plant would be located on a 1.25-hectare parcel of land on the hillside above the current parking lot. That land was granted to the City of Victoria from the federal government in 1988 on the condition that it be used as parkland. Dan Ebenal reports. (Victoria News)

SEWAGE IN THE CRD: Esquimalt takes an uneasy second look at McLoughlin
Nearly two years ago, the citizens of Esquimalt spoke loud and clear – McLoughlin Point was not the appropriate site for the Capital Regional District’s $783-million sewage treatment plant. Esquimalt councillors were met with a standing ovation when they not only rejected the shoreline site, but unanimously slammed the door on any future proposals. Despite the closed door, the CRD put McLoughlin back on the table due to the cost and disruption of alternatives. This time, however, it’s not being considered as the sole site for a treatment plant, but part of a two-facility solution that also includes Victoria’s Clover Point and allows for a future site on the West Shore. A DND-owned section of Macaulay Point is part of the recommendation, but only as an alternative to McLoughlin. Pamela Roth reports. (Victoria News)

Drone harassment of marine mammals rising on California coast
They’re all over social media: jaw-droppingly dramatic videos and photographs of marine wildlife and scenery, images captured by cameras mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles or drones. Some people whose equipment recorded those images, especially when the drones got too close to marine mammals, may have been breaking the law. Many marine mammals are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which includes admonitions about harassment of the animals. The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary includes four separate zones in which overflights by motorized aircraft aren’t allowed below 1,000 feet above the sea’s surface. Kathie Tanner reports. (Tribune News)

Sidney mayor wants passenger ferry to Gulf Islands
The mayor of a B.C. town is taking the first step toward creating a ferry that will carry foot passengers from Sidney to the Gulf Islands, because he says it will boost the town's economy. Mayor Steve Price wants to add another ferry route to Sidney, one that could make the ferry ride from the town to the Gulf Islands a 20-minute trip. "We're just about to hire a consultant to do a visioning process on our whole downtown waterfront, all the way from Port Sidney down to our fishing pier," said Price. (CBC)

$4M will be spent to repair Oregon refuge that was occupied
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will spend roughly $4 million to clean, repair and upgrade the Oregon wildlife refuge that was the site of a 41-day armed occupation by ranchers earlier this year…. Photos of the refuge shared by federal officials show that the ranchers left a mess inside the building…. In all, the standoff will cost Fish and Wildlife about $6 million, with about $2 million spent during the takeover, including the costs of moving the refuge’s 17 employees out of town for safety to live at government expense in hotels for weeks… (Associated Press)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-  300 AM PDT FRI MAR 25 2016  

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR HAZARDOUS SEAS IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS  AFTERNOON  

TODAY  NW WIND TO 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING SE TO 10 KT THIS  AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 11 FT AT 13  SECONDS...SUBSIDING TO 9 FT AT 13 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. A SLIGHT  CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE MORNING.

TONIGHT  SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 7 FT  AT 11 SECONDS.

SAT  SE WIND 10 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT  11 SECONDS. A SLIGHT CHANCE OF RAIN IN THE AFTERNOON.

SAT NIGHT  SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING W 15 TO 25 KT AFTER  MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 3 TO 5 FT AFTER  MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS.

SUN  W WIND 10 TO 20 KT...BECOMING 5 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON.  WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 9 SECONDS.

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